Alcina

Welcome to Alcina’s island paradise. All men who set foot there fall under her spell, but soon discover it’s all an illusion: Alcina is an enchantress whose island is nothing but a barren wasteland, its animals, rocks and trees are in fact her spellbound discarded lovers.

Handel’s bewitching tale of deception, seduction, love and loss is bursting with heart-melting music, such as Ruggiero’s regretful farewell to the beauty of Alcina’s island. But to whom is he saying goodbye, and who will pay the ultimate sacrifice?

"Ian Galloway’s video backdrop initially suggests an island of dreams but morphs into an oppressive heart of darkness jungle" The Guardian

Ian Galloway worked with Hannah Clark and Tim Albery to conceptualise the journey into Alcina’s island. Ignoring palaces and traditional locations, the viewer moves further and further into the jungle, the environment growing more and more tangled as the plot does.

"Chichesters take on Andrea Levys novel refuses to compromise - and the result is phenomenal" - The Telegraph *****

Using Unreal Engine, we created Alcina’s entire island as an extremely detailed, realtime rendered environment, allowing us to move around the island at will, react to notes and create new video content without waiting for lengthy renders.

Client:
Opera North

Location:
Leeds Grand Theatre, 2022

Services:
Video & Projection Design
Content Creation

Team:
Video Designer: Ian William Galloway
Animator: Jachym Bouzek

Production Credits:
Director: Tim Albery
Set and Costume Designer: Hannah Clark
Lighting Designer: Matthew Richardson

Photos:
© James Glossop